Gladwell's Line: A busy few months of sailing, the state of the Cup
by Richard Gladwell/Sail-World NZ 17 Dec 00:07 NZDT
13 December 2025
Optimist - Day 2 - Sir Peter Blake Regatta - Torbay Sailing Club - December 8, 2025 © Jacob Fewtrell/Insight Media/Insightmedia.co.nz/
In New Zealand, a great run of weather, in Auckland at least, has signalled the start of what looks to be a great sailing season.
There is plenty coming up with the Rolex Sydney Hobart getting underway on Boxing Day, with five supermaxis expected to compete, and for line honours, it is anyone's race. A key point of interest will be Palm Beach XI's performance under regular skipper Mark Richards. The former Wild Oats XI has been fitted with IMOCA-type C-Foils, and in the right conditions could be a real threat. Otherwise, the front-running is expected to be between Comanche, Law Connect, and Scallywag. Grant Wharrington's Wild Thing could also be in the mix.
There are four New Zealand boats in the race, with most interest in the performance of Jim Murray's Callisto, the PAC52, a new boat, and not to be confused, with the same name as Murray's previous Botin designed GP42, which represented RNZYS in the Admiral's Cup in July this year. Also competing is the well-performed V5, one of the original TP52s, now skippered by Brian Petersen; Vixen Racing, a Verdier 40 skippered by Sharon Ferris-Choat; and Rum Bucket, a More 55 skippered by Quintin Fowler.
All told, 142 yachts from nine countries will be competing in one of the largest fleets to contest the 625nm offshore classic. We had a taste of what is to come in the SOLAS Big Boat Challenge on Sydney Harbour, which was expected to be a Comanche-led procession, but it was anything but, with frequent lead changes.
Next up will be the start of Season 6 of the SailGP League, with the opening event staged in Fremantle on an Indian Ocean course starting on January 17, 2026. SailGP will move to Auckland for the second event on February 14-15. That will be followed by the Auckland Boat Show, running from March 5 to March 8, and the three-day Auckland Wooden Boat Festival on March 13, 2026.
It has been a moderately busy couple of months, with the A-Class Catamaran Worlds being the highlight. Staged off Milford Beach by the Milford Cruising Club, the single-handed event, while followed with great interest internationally, didn't rate a mention in the mainstream media.
The Classic division, for non-foiling boats, attracted the biggest fleet and was won by Poland's Jacek Noetzel. The Open World Championship was won by Jakub Surowiec, also from Poland. The two formed part of what is known as the "Polish Armada" in the class. Noetzel won an incredible ten of the 12 races sailed - opting not to sail on the final day, as he already had the world title in his kit bag. In the Open series, Jakub Surowiec won his third successive world championship, after a close-fought series with Ravi Parent (USA). Australia's Darren Bundock placed third after a very strong performance in the three races sailed on the final day.
Competing in the Open event was one of the world's top women sailors, Carolijn Brouwer, who has sailed in three Olympic regattas in three different classes and represented two countries at Olympic level. She has also sailed in three Round the World Races, and came to New Zealand off the back of sailing aboard the IMOCA 60 Holcim PRB in The Ocean Race Europe, and will be sailing in her sixth or seventh Rolex Sydney Hobart, come Boxing Day.
She turned in a gutsy performance mid-regatta, sailing three races in winds gusting to 30kts, without capsizing, and still finishing mid-fleet. She admitted in an interview that it was a struggle to keep the foiler in the water, upwind and down. Regardless of gender, hers was a very skilful performance in boat handling from someone weighing just 67 kg. Her commitments in The Ocean Race Europe meant she arrived home (at Lake Macquarie, Australia), just as the boats were being packed for New Zealand, and she had no real training before arriving in Milford. Brouwer has competed in New Zealand previously - in the 2008 Tornado Worlds off Takapuna, and in two Volvo Ocean Races that have stopped over in Auckland. She was part of the crew which won the 2017/18 Volvo Ocean Race sailing aboard Dongfeng Racing.
In the second edition of the Sydney-Auckland race, which started on October 11, Bryon Ehrhart’s USA-registered Juan K 88 Lucky led from the outset and shattered the existing race record with a time of just 2 days, 20 hours, 27 minutes, for the 1250nm course. The third leg of the new Southern Cross Series will also finish in Auckland, in early March. That too will start from Sydney on the same course, and a key point of interest will be whether Lucky's record comes under threat. The Southern Cross Series comprises three events - the just-concluded Cabbage Tree Island race, the Rolex Sydney Hobart, and the Sydney Auckland Race.
Earlier this month, the 23rd edition of the annual Sir Peter Blake regatta at Torbay Sailing Club attracted over 350 sailors competing in 15 classes. The event marks the beginning of the small boat racing season, starting with the P-class Tanner and Tauranga Cups at Kohimaramara Yacht Club, starting on January 4, and concluding with the NZ Optimist Nationals at New Plymouth starting on April 3, 2026
This week, the Youth World Championships start in Vilamoura, Portugal, on Monday night. New Zealand will be represented by 13 sailors, many of whom are sailing for the second or third time at Youth Worlds level. The regatta is a showcase for the top youth talent, who in the past have gone on to dominate Olympic fleets as well as the America's Cup and SailGP regattas.
Two weeks ago, Emirates Great Britain won the SailGP Grand Final and pocketed the $US2million winner-takes-all prize money. That took the Brits to the top of the earnings table for SailGP with US4.4million prizemoney from Season 5. The Final series in Abu Dhabi will be remembered for the close-fought Final where the Black Foils looked to have the race in the bag, before the Brits struck with a masterpiece of race strategy. Their winning move at Mark 3 must have been conjured up over a leg ahead to get the boat positioned correctly at Mark 2, and able to strike at the top of the next leg. There has been plenty of analysis and full marks to the Emirates Team GB strategist, Hannah Mills, for once again calling the moves from a long way out, and making her team look famous.
On the America's Cup, there is little to report. No entries - aside from the Kiwis and Brits, who were signed up 14 months ago. In fact, it has not been officially stated as to when the Entry Period closes. It is important that only those teams that enter during the Entry Period are entitled to seats as Founding Partners on the America's Cup Partnership Board. Late entries have to be approved unanimously to take their place at the ACP board table.
The only date we have to work off is the close of Late Entries on January 31, 2026. But under the Mutual Consent provisions of the Deed of Gift, which governs the Cup, even that could be altered.
Emirates Team New Zealand and the Italians are occasionally sailing two AC40s, which is significant but hardly riveting stuff. The French are also sailing their single AC40, and the British - now Athena Racing did the same out of Barcelona, this week - with their Womens Team.
We do have a report from an interview between Ben Ainslie and his wife, in which he says it is unlikely that he will skipper the AC75 in the next Cup. That move is probably a consequence of trying to manage his business interests in the America's Cup and SailGP teams. Ainslie has already been replaced as CEO by Round the World Race winner, Ian Walker, who previously headed up the North Sails operation in the UK.
Peter Dubens of private equity firm Oakley Capital now seems to be the power behind the throne in the British team. Oakley Capital also owns North Technology, which, in turn, is the parent company of North Sails and Southern Spars. Walker's appointment is a sound move - he has a reputation as a quiet organiser and motivator - and should get momentum into the tardy British team.
In the interview with his wife, in the latest Sail-World NZ newsletter, Ben Ainslie admits that they are behind Luna Rossa and Emirates Team New Zealand. Quite why the British only sailed the one AC40 out of Barcelona this week is a little baffling. They do have two boats there, don't they? Or is their focus really on the Youth and Womens event, this time around? Its primary purpose seems to have been a publicity exercise for two re-signed sponsors of the Youth and Womens teams.
The US team, American Magic, says it is sitting out the current 2027 America's Cup cycle. A new US team, Riptide Racing, headed by top match racer Chris Poole, is in the market looking to raise US$50million - well short of the US$87million (€75million) allowed by the 2027 AC Protocol budget cap.
Meanwhile, SailGP's PR team have taken full advantage of the silent Cup, promoting the "Transfer Season," where the SailGP teams horse-trade wingsail trimmers, flight controllers, and the occasional grinder. In today's edition of "Sailorz", French wingsail trimmer Kévin Péponnet, who is off to join the German team, says that SailGP has now grown to the point, since Season 4, where it is viable to be the "sole project" for a professional sailor. Average salaries are said to €10,000 per month, with a rumoured upper end of €25-30,000 per month (NZ$50-60,000). Péponnet says he is staying in touch with the K-Challenge, the French America's Cup team, "but it won't be my primary project".
Finally, we have another interesting story and video on Pyewacket 70, one of the world's top offshore raceboats, which is currently on the market. We interviewed co-skipper Ben Mitchell from San Diego, who started offshore racing while still at college and was crew aboard Kialoa III when it set the Sydney Hobart race record in 1975. Mitchell just oozed offshore sailing experience, in quite a different world from the rarefied atmosphere of SailGP and the America's Cup. Next week, we will be featuring a second interview with Philippe Oulhen of the Juan K Yacht Design on optimising Pyewacket 70 to be more competitive in IRC racing events. By our calculations, based on the trial rating certificate, the already highly competitive Volvo70 would gain an advantage of 3 minutes per hour from sail plan alterations alone. Another VO70 has been similarly optimised to become a "Rating Bandit".
Pyewacket 70 is an excellent option for a new owner looking to make their mark on the world's great offshore races.
Contact Paul MacDonald
Ph/WhatsApp: +64 27 5133 524
Email:
Web: www.mcdyachts.com/pyewacket
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Wishing you a great Christmas and New Year!
Good sailing!
Richard Gladwell
NZ Editor
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